A review of the uses and methods of processing banana and plantain (musa spp.) into storable food products

J. Agric. Res. & Dev. 9(2) Copy @ 2010, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ilorin
A review of the uses and methods of processing banana and
plantain (Musa spp.) into storable food products.
A.O. ABIODUN-SOLANKE and K.O. FALADE
Department of Food Technology,
University of Ibadan, Ibadan. Nigeria
ABSTRACT
Plantain belongs to the genus Musa of the family musaceae. Nearly all edible plantain
cultivar are derived from two wild species, M. acuminate and M. balbisiana (Robinson, 1996).
These wild species are classified on the basis of the proportion of the genetic constitution
contributed by each parental source (Robinson, 1996). Plantain (Musa spp.) is an important
dietary source of carbohydrate in the humid tropical zones of Africa, Asia and South America.
(Robinson, 1996). Plantain is rich in vitamins A, C and B group as well as minerals such as
calcium and iron (Marriott & Lancaster, 1983). Musa spp. are useful as food to be consumed
by human either as flour to be used in confectionaries or as jams and jellies; in chips etc. It’s
peel can be used as animal feed. All parts of the banana plant have medicinal applications:
the flower in bronchitis and dysentery and on ulcers, cooked flowers are given to diabetics
etc. It’s leaves are also useful for lining cooking pots and for wrapping. Improved processes
have also made it possible to utilize banana fibre for ropes, table mats and handbag
(Chandler, 1995). Despite these many uses of Musa spp.and the huge tonnages harvested
each year, there are certain problems such as inaccessibility to production areas, far
distances between production areas and customers, inadequate infrastructures for
harvesting, carelessness on the part of harvesters and handlers among others which are all
factors that lead to high rate of post harvest losses, hence the need for processing of these
important crops. Different processing methods of Musa spp. into new food products which
include production of flour, preparation of jams and jellies and the quality attributes of the
products obtained from processed Musa spp.. were reviewed. It can therefore be concluded
that subjecting Musa spp. to processing methods will help enhance and improve the value of
the fruit and make it available all year round for better utilization.
Keywords: Drying, flour, banana, powder, jams, jellies.
INTRODUCTION
Banana is the common name used for the herbaceous plants of the genus
Musa which is cultivated in more than 100 countries throughout the tropics
and subtropics, with an annual world production of about 98million tonnes,
of which around a third is produced in each of the African, Asia-Pacific, and
Latin American and Caribbean regions (Frison & Sharrock, 1999).
Banana plants are monocotyledonous perennial and important crop in the
tropical and Sub tropical world regions (Valmayor et al., 2000), including

86 ABIODUN-SOLANKE and FALADE
dessert banana, plantain and cooking bananas. Traded plantain (Musa
paradisiaca AAB) and other cooking bananas (Musa ABB) are almost entirely
derived from the AA-BB hybridization of M. acuminate (AA) and M.
bulbisiana (BB) (Robinson, 1996). Plantain and cooking bananas are very
similar to unripe dessert bananas (M. cavendish AAA) in exterior appearance,
although often larger; the main differences in the former being that their
flesh is starchy rather than sweet, they are used unripe and require cooking
(Valmayor et al., 2006). Dessert bananas are consumed usually as ripe fruits;
whereas ripe and unripe plantain fruits are usually consumed boiled or fried
(Adeniji et al., 2006).
Plantain belongs to the genus Musa of the family musaceae. Nearly all edible
plantain cultivar are derived from two wild species, M. acuminate and M.
balbisiana (Robinson, 1996). These wild species are classified on the basis of
the proportion of the genetic constitution contributed by each parental
source (Robinson, 1996). Plantain is a staple crop and an important dietary
source of carbohydrate in Nigeria and in the humid tropical zones of Africa,
Asia and South America (Robinson, 1996). Plantain is rich in vitamins A, C
and B group as well as minerals such as calcium and iron (Marriott and
Lancaster, 1983; Robinson, 1996). Plantain provides between 9% and 35% of
the total calories in the diets of more than 14 million people in Sub sahara
Africa (Robinson, 1996). The contributions of this staple starch crop to the
food chains of this region cannot be overemphasized (Robinson, 1996).
Plantains are typical climacteric fruits in that they exhibit a well defined pre-
climateric phase after harvesting during which the fruit remains unripe, the
basal respiration rate is low and ethylene production is almost undetectable.
The respiratory climacteric commences spontaneously and there is a rapid
and well-defined rise in respiratory rate which is closely synchronized with
evolution of ethylene, with chlorophyll breakdown in the peel and with
starch to sugar conversion and tissue softening in the pulp (Marriot and
Lancaster, 1983; Ogazi, 1996). The fruit usually harvested at it’s mature but
unripe stage, ripens within two to seven days, thus making plantain a highly
perishable crop, particularly in the overripe stage (Robinson, 1996). An
unripened banana and the plantain have high starch and low sugar levels plus
copious amounts of bitter-tasting latex. Starch is converted to sugar as the
fruit ripens, so that bananas can eventually contain about 25% of total
sugars. As the banana ripens, the latex is also decomposed. Plantain has the
stinging, bitter latex, so the peel is removed with a knife and the pulp is
soaked in salt water for 5–10 min prior to cooking. Bananas are harvested
unripe and green, because they can ripen and spoil very rapidly (Daniells et
al., 2001)
FAO (2004) data sources put the world production of plantains at about 60
million tons (FAO, 2004). In West Africa, plantain production increased at an
average annual rate of between 2.3% to 2.6% (FAO, 2004). The level of

Processing Banana and Plantain (Musa spp.) into Storable Food Products 87
production of plantains in Africa is comparable with other fruits like grapes
(57 million tons); citrus (50 million tons) but much greater than most other
important fruits like apples (21 million tons) and mangoes (13 million tons)
(FAO, 2004). The higher production figures for plantains has been attributed
to the cheaper methods of growing that require few labor inputs, little soil
preparation and little weeding are needed once the plant has established
vegetative cover. (FAO, 2004).
MATURITY INDICES OF MUSA spp
Plantain require about three months from the beginning of flowering until
harvest. Multiple fruits are produced on a large bunch, weighing between
50-200kg (Ogazi, 1996). Within the bunch are clusters of double rows of fruit
called “hands” and individual fruit called “fingers”. (Ogazi, 1996).
Maturity standards for plantains are less precise than they are for bananas.
Several different external and internal fruit characteristics can be used to
determine plantain maturity. These include fruit diameter, age of the bunch,
angularity of the fruit, length of the fruit, and peel color (Johnson et al.,
1998). The stage of maturity for harvest depends on the intended market
destination (Johnson et al., 1998). Locally marketed plantains can be
harvested at a more advanced maturity stage compared to export market
fruit. Export market destined fruit should be harvested the day before or the
same day of shipment (Ogazi, 1996). Plantain maturity is related to the
diameter of the fingers. This is determined by measuring the diameter of the
fruit at its mid point with a pair of calipers (Ogazi, 1996).
Another method for estimating plantain maturity is to record the age of the
bunch. The time from when the fruit bunch first becomes visible (Shooting)
is recorded. Bunches can be tagged with different colored ribbons at the
time of shooting, and subsequently harvested after the appropriate time for
the particular cultivar, based on the season of the year and experience
(Johnson et al., 1998). The colour of the ribbons is changed weekly to
coincide with the time of shooting and subsequently the age of the bunch
(Johnson et al., 1998).
A third method used to determine harvest maturity is to observe the shape
(fullness) and angularity of the fruit. Immature fruit is angular in cross-
sectional shape and has distinct ridges (Ogazi, 1996). As the fruit matures, it
becomes less angular and more rounded or full. The degree of roundness
differs between cultivars and location of the hand on the bunch. Typically,
the fullness of the fruit on the middle hand is measured. The appropriate
shape to harvest the fruit depends on the market destination. Fruit intended
for the domestic market should be harvested when the fruit shape is nearly
round (Johnson et al., 1998).

A fourth way of estimating plantain bunch maturity is to measure the length
of the edible pulp portion of the fruit from the fingers in the middle hand.
The length should be a minimum of 15cm for the domestic market and 18cm
for the export market (Johnson et al., 1998). Finally, peel colour is another
frequently used method of assessing fruit maturity. The peel remains green
throughout growth and development of the fruit until it reaches physiological
maturity. It then changes to a yellow colour during ripening. (Ogazi, 1996).
However, plantain fruit should be harvested when the peel is green in colour
to withstand the rigors of handling and distribution (Johnson et al.,1998).
Internal fruit composition changes dramatically during plantain fruit ripening.
At physiological maturity, the fruit is fully developed in size, green in peel
colour, and at its highest level of starch (Ogazi, 1996). The starch will
progressively be converted to sugar as ripening progresses.
The stage of harvest maturity of plantains will depend on the target market.
Plantains for local market are harvested at a more advanced stage of
maturity than those for exportation (Ogazi, 1996). However, if the fruit is too
mature at harvest, particularly following irrigation or rainfall, fruit splitting
can occur during handling. Also, mature fruit may ripen prematurely during
transport or storage (Ogazi, 1996).
PROCESSING QUALITY
The bulk of the banana, cooking banana and plantain are eaten either as raw,
in the ripe state, or as a cooked vegetable, and only a very small proportion
are processed in order to obtain a storable product. Generally, preserved
products do not contribute significantly to the diet of the millions of people
who eat banana, cooking banana and plantain, however in some countries or
areas, the processed or preserved products are important in periods when
food is scarce. Processing is recognized as a way of preserving the fruit. Yet
the proportion of fruits processed and the suitability of the various Musa
groups to processing is relatively unknown. New Musa hybrids should
therefore be screened for their processing quality or suitability for processing
(Thompson, 1995).
The ripe banana is utilized in a multitude of ways in the human diet, from
simply being peeled and eaten out of hand to being sliced and served in fruit
cups and salads, sandwiches, custards and gelatins, being mashed and
incorporated into ice cream, bread, muffins and cream pies (Adeniji et al.,
2006). Ripe plantains are often sliced lengthwise, baked or boiled, and
served (perhaps with a garnish of brown sugar or chopped peanuts) as an
accompaniment for ham or other meats. Ripe plantain may be thinly sliced
and cooked with lemon juice and sugar to make jam or sauce, stirring
frequently during 20 or 30 minutes until the mixture jells. Whole, peeled
plantain can be spiced by adding them to a mixture of vinegar, sugar, cloves

and cinnamon which has boiled long enough to become thick and then
letting them cook for 2 minutes (Chandler, 1995).
Banana puree is important as infant food and can be successfully canned by
the addition of ascorbic acid to prevent discoloration. The puree is produces
on a commercial scale in factories close to banana fields and packed in
plastic-lined 10 cans and 55-gallon metal drums for use in baby foods, cake,
pie, ice cream, cheesecake, doughnuts, milk shakes and many other products
(Ogazi, 1996).
In Polynesia, there is a traditional method of preserving large quantities of
bananas for years as emergency food in case of famine (Ogazi, 1996). A pit is
dug in the ground and lined with banana and Heliconza leaves. The peeled
bananas are wrapped in Heliconza leaves, arranged in layer after layer, then
banana leaves are placed on top and soil and rocks heaped over all. The pits
remain unopened until the fermented food, called “masi”, is needed.
In Costa Rica, ripe bananas from as entire bunch are peeled and boiled slowly
for hours to make thick syrup which is called “honey” (Ogazi, 1996).
Through experimental work with a view to freezing peeled, blanched, sliced
green plantain, it has been found that, with a pulp-to-peel ratio of less than
1:3 the fruits turn gray on exposure to air after processing and this
discoloration is believed to be caused by the high iron content (4.28p/m) of
the surface layer of the flesh. Its reaction to the tannin normally present in
green bananas and plantains. At pulp to peel ratio of 1.0, the tannin level in
green bananas is 241.4mg; at 1.3, 151.0mg, and at 1.5, 112.6mg, per 100g
(Ogazi, 1996). Therefore, it is recommended that for freezing, green bananas
should be harvested at a stage of maturity evidenced by 1.5 pulp-to-peel
ratio. Such fruits have a slightly yellowish flesh, higher carotene content, and
are free of off-flavors. The slices are cooked by the consumer without
thawing (Ogazi, 1996).
Completely green plantains are 50% flesh and 50% peel (Ogazi, 1996).
Plantain for freezing should have a pulp content of at least 60% for maximum
quality in the ultimate food product, but a range of 55 to 65% is considered
commercially acceptable (Ogazi, 1996).
In Ghana, plantains are consumed at 5 different stages of ripeness (Chandler,
1995). Fully ripe plantains are often deep fried or cooked in various dishes.
A Ghanian pancake called “fatale” is made of nearly full ripe plantains and
fermented whole meal dough of maize, seasoned with onions, ginger, pepper
and salt, and fried in palm oil. “Kaklo” is the same mix but thicker and rolled
into balls which are deep-fried. Because home preparation is laborious, a
commercial dehydrated mix has been developed. In Ghana, green plantains
are boiled and eaten in stew or mashed, together with boiled cassava, into a

popular plastic product called “fufu” which is eaten with soup. Because of
the great surplus of plantains in summer, technologists have developed
methods for drying and storing of strips and cubes of plantain for house use
in making “fufu” out of season. The cubes can also be ground into plantain
flour. Use of infra red, microwave, and extrusion systems have resulted in
high-quality finished products. Processing has the added advantage of
keeping the peels at factories where they may be converted into useful by-
products instead of being added to the bulk of household garbage (Chandler,
1995).
Banana or plantain flour, or powder, is made domestically by sun drying slices
of unripe fruits and pulverizing (Anon, 1999). Commercially, it is produced
by spray-drying, or drum-drying, the mashed fruits (Anon, 1999). The flour
can be mixed 50-50 with wheat flour for making cupcakes. Two popular
Puerto Rican foods are “pasteless” and “alcapurais” both are pastry stuffed
with meat, the first is wrapped in plantain leaves and boiled the latter is
fried. The pastry is made of plantain flour or a mixture of plantain with
cassava or cocoyam.
Commercial production and marketing of fried green plantain and banana
chips has been increasing in various parts of the world over the past 25 years
and these products are commonly found in retail groceries alongside potato
chips and other snack foods.
In Africa, ripe bananas and plantains are also processed into beer and wine.
The Tropical Products Institute in London has established a simple procedure
for preparing acceptable vinegar from fermented banana rejects (Anon,
1999)
Flour and Powder
Flour can be made from green unripe banana, cooking banana or plantain.
Fruits are hand-peeled and sliced or chopped into pieces about 5-10 mm
thick. The slices will be dried in the sun by spreading out the slices on mats,
on bamboo framework, on cement floors, or on a roof or sheets of
corrugated iron or simply on a sweptbare ground. Various designs of solar
dryers can also be used, or they may be dried in ovens, over fires, in a cabinet
dryer or tunnel dryer (Thompson, 1995). The fruits are either sun-dried which
is the former, oven-dried, the latter or foam-mat dried which will be
described now. Sun and oven-drying methods have been used for drying of
plantain and banana (Bowrey et al., 1980; Johnson et al., 1998; Demirel &
Turhan, 2003) with some success, the introduction of foam-mat drying
brought much more (Falade and Olugbuyi, 2009). Musa spp. especially
cooking banana is cheaper relatively when compared with wheat and other
cereals for the production of flours therefore processing of cooking banana
should be encouraged.

In foam-mat drying plantain puree was prepared by blending steam
blanched plantain and distilled water for 2 mins in a Waring blender to
produce a 30 ± 0.4% total solids (TS) paste. A 20% (w ⁄ w) glyceryl
monostearate (GMS) suspension is prepared by dissolving a known weight of
GMS in hot water at 100o
C. The 20% suspension is added to obtain a 0.02%
GMS in the plantain paste. The mixture of plantain paste (30% TS) and GMS
suspension are then transferred into a Kenwood Chef mixer and whipped at
maximum speed for 4 mins until homogenous foam is obtained. The whipped
foam could be extruded using a manual Euroline icing syringe (Model 5
Nozzles stainless steel 19 cm, Euroline, Essex, UK) with an outlet orifice of 4
mm diameter on a stainless steel wire mesh and dried in a cross-flow
Gallenkamp Oven at 60o
C for 45–90 mins. The dried plantain is scraped off
and packaged in low density polyethylene (100 μm) to prevent moisture
absorption (Falade and Olugbuyi, 2009). After drying, the chopped pieces
have a moisture content of about 5-10%. The dried pieces were ground and
usually sieved to produce the flour. The flour is packaged in moisture proof
bags. The dried slices are stored and only converted to flour when needed
since the flour tends to lose its flavour rapidly or may absorb moisture
(hygroscopic) and become mouldy.
Powder could be prepared from fully ripe banana, cooking banana or
plantain. Fruits are washed, hand-peeled and chopped fairly coarsely. The
material is converted into a paste by passing through a mill to reduce the
particle to a colloidal size (below about 10 μm). A 1-2% Sodium
metabisulphite solution is added at this stage to improve the colour of the
final product or to prevent discolouration. The material is then dried. Drying
can be achieved, either in a spray dryer (at 30 to 32°C and less than 30%
Relative Humidity under vacuum) or a drum dryer (product temperature
should not exceed 94°C). After drum drying it might be necessary to further
dry the product in a cabinet dryer. The final moisture content of the powder
should be about 2% and should be stored in moisture proof bags (Thompson,
1995).
Banana, plantain and cooking banana (Musa spp) may be processed into
many products at different stages of physiological maturity; unripe, ripe,
overripe or in a number of ways such as frying, grilling, boiling and drying.
According to Demirel & Turhan (2003), drying adds value to banana in
addition to preservation. Moisture removal from plantain seems to be an
appropriate and economical means of preserving Musa spp, resulting in shelf
stable and convenience products. Currently, unripe plantain flour is being
processed into a thick paste product known as ‘amala’ in the western part of
Nigeria, which is medically recommended for diabetic patient (Adeniji et al.,
2006). Ripe banana powder is used in bakery and confectionery industries, in
infant diets and the treatment of intestinal disorders (Adeniji et al., 2006).

Improved cultivars of plantain and banana may provide high quality whole
flour from the entire fruit for livestock feed, which may eventually provide
protein in human diet from consumption of meat and other products of
livestock (Thompson, 1995.). Such flour may be employed in traditional
dishes for human consumption based on their nutritional profiles. Although,
there is need to investigate the application of whole Musa flour in baking and
confectioneries from the point of view of their pasting properties but that
notwithstanding it has recorded success when used in addition to the
conventional wheat flour. The use of entire fingers of plantain and banana
could be a rapid approach in flour production with improved levels of
nutrients, especially minerals, which are concentrated in the peel (Izonfuo
and Omuaru, 1988).
Canned slices
Several methods for canning banana slices in syrup have been described
(Thompson, 1995). Best quality slices are obtainable from fruit at an early
stage of ripeness. The slices are processed in syrup of 25° Brix with pH of
about 4.2 and in some processes calcium chloride (0.2%) or calcium lactate
(0.5%) are added as firming agent (Marriot and Lancaster, 1983). Canning
plantain slices in syrup are considered to be unsatisfactory (Sanchez-Nieva
and Hernandez, 1967). However, ripe slices may be cooked in 40° Brix syrup
until the concentration of the syrup reach 54-60° Brix and cinnamon and
lemon juice is added to improve the colour. The product may be packed in
boilable plastic pouches and quick frozen at -23°C. It is served by boiling the
pouches in water for 15 mins.
Chips (Crisps)
Various methods of preparing banana or plantain chips have been described
in the literature. Typically, unripe banana or plantain may be thinly sliced
vertically or transversely (1.2-0.8 mm thick) (Berg et al., 1971) The slices are
immersed in a sodium or potassium metabisulphate solution (to improve the
colour of the final product or to prevent discolouration) and fried in
hydrogenated oil at 180-200°C. The fried slices are dusted with salt and
antioxidant (e.g. butylatedhydroxytoluene to delay rancidity); (Marriot and
Lancaster, 1983). Alternatively slices may be dried before frying and the
antioxidant and salt are added with the oil. Fried chips should have moisture
content of about 1.5 to 2.0%. The temperature at which the chips are fried
and the frying time affects their oil content, appearance, texture and flavour
(Thompson, 1995). The chips must be packed in moisture proof bags to
prevent them absorbing moisture and losing their crispness.

Jam and Jelly
The various methods of preparing jam and jelly have been described in
several literatures. In one method for the preparation of jelly, fully ripe or
over-ripe fruits are used. Fruits are hand-peeled and cut into 2 cm pieces or
slices. The slices are boiled for 1 hr in 60° Brix sugar syrup at the rate of 1 lb
of banana to 1 pint of syrup (454 g to 0.5681). This is then strained and the
clear solution is boiled until it sets. The pH should be adjusted to 3.5. Pectin
may be added to improve the set (Thompson, 1995). A commercial formula
for producing banana jam is as follows (Thompson, 1995): 200 lbs of sugar,
10 gallons of water and 12 ounces of cream of tartar.
These are heated to 110°C and then 2.5 gallons of lemon juice (lime juice or
citric acid can be used to replace the lemon juice to reduce the pH of the jam
to 3.5) are added. The mixture is heated to 107°C until the correct
consistency is obtained.
MEDICAL USES
All parts of the banana plant have medicinal applications: the flowers in
bronchitis and dysentery and on ulcers; cooked flowers are given to
diabetics; the astringent plant sap in cases of hysteria, epilepsy, leprosy,
fevers, hemorrhages, acute dysentery and diarrhea, and it is applied on
hemorrhoids, insect and other stings and bites, young leaves are placed as
poultices on burns and other skin afflictions, the astringent ashes of the
unripe peel and of the leaves are taken in dysentery and diarrhea and used
for treating malignant ulcers, the roots are administered in digestive
disorders, dysentery and other ailments; banana seed mucilage is given in
cases of catarrh and diarrhea in India (Anon, 1999).
Antifungal and antibiotic principles are found in the peel and pulp of fully ripe
bananas. The antibiotic acts against Mycobacteria. A fungicide in the peel
and pulp of green fruits is active against a fungus disease of tomato plants.
Norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin are also present in the ripe peel
and pulp. The first two elevate blood pressure; serotonin inhibits gastric
secretion and stimulates the smooth muscle of the intestines (Anon, 1999).
OTHER USES
Banana and plantain leaves are widely used as plates and for lining cooking
pits and for wrapping food for cooking or storage. A section of leaf often
serves as an eye-shade (Anon, 1999). In Latin America, it is a common
practice during rains to hold plantain leaf by the petiole, upside-down, over
one’s back as an “umbrella” or “raincoat” (Anon, 1999). The leaves of the
‘Fehi” banana are used for thatching, packing and cigarette wrappers. The
pseudomonas has been fastened together as rafts. Seat ads for benches are

made of strips of dried banana pseudostems in Ecuador. In West Africa, fiber
from the pseudostem is values for fishing lines. In the Philippines, it is woven
into a thin, transparent fabric called “agna” which is the principal material in
some regions for women’s blouses and men’s shirts. It is also used for
making handkerchiefs. In Ceylon, it is fashioned into soles for inexpensive
shoes and used for floor coverings (Thompson, 1995).
Plantain fibre is said to be superior to that from bananas. In the mid-19th
Century, there was quite an active banana fiber industry in Jamaica.
Improved processes have made it possible to utilize banana fiber for many
purposes such as rope, table mats and handbags. A good quality paper is
made by combining banana fiber with that of the betel nut husk (Chandler,
1995).
Dried banana peel, because of its 30 to 40% tannin content is used to blacken
leather. The ash from the dried peel of bananas and plantains is rich in
potash and used for making soap. That of the burned peel of unripe fruits of
certain varieties is used for dyeing (Ogazi, 1996).
ANIMAL FEED
Rejected ripe bananas, supplemented with protein, vitamins and minerals,
and are commonly fed to swine. Green bananas are also used for fattening
hogs but, because of the dryness and astringency and bitter taste due to the
tannin content, these animals do not care for them unless they are cooked,
which makes the feeling costs too high for most growers. Therefore,
dehydrated green banana meal has been developed and, though not equal to
grain, can constitute up to 75% of the normal hog diet, 40% of the diet of
gestating sows. It is not recommended for lactating sows, nor is ripe bananas
even with a 40% protein supplement (Anon, 1999).
Beef cattle are very fond of green bananas whether they are whole, chopped
or sliced. Because of the fruit’s deficiency in protein, urea is used at the rate
of 8.8 lbs (4 kg) per ton, with a little molasses mixed in to mask the flavor.
But transportation is expensive unless the cattle ranch is located near the
banana fields. A minor disadvantage is that the bananas are somewhat
laxative and the cattle need to be washed down daily. With dairy cattle, it is
recommended that bananas constitute no more than 20% of the feed
(Chandler, 1995).
In the Philippines, it has been found that meal made from dehydrated reject
bananas can form 14% of total broiler rations without adverse effects. Meal
made from green and ripe plantain peels has been experimentally fed to
chicks in Nigeria. Flour from unpeeled plantains, developed for human
consumption, was fed to chicks in a mixture of 2/3 flour and 1/3 commercial
chick feed and the birds were maintained until they reached the size of

fryers. They were found thinner and lighter than those on 100% chick feed
and the gizzard lining peeled in shreds. It was assumed that these effects
were the result of protein deficiency in the plantains, but they were more
likely the result of the tannin content of the flour which interferes with the
utilization of protein (Anon, 1999).
Leaves, pseudostems, fruit stalks and peels after chopping, fermentation and
drying, yield a meal somewhat more nutritious than alfalfa press cake. This
waste material has been considered for use as organic fertilizer in Somalia. In
Malaya, pigs fed the pseudostems are less prone to liver and kidney parasites
than those on other diets.
Banana peel contains beta sitosterol, stigmasterol, campesterol,
cyclocucalenol, cycloartanol and 24-methylene cycloartanol (Anon, 1999).
The major constituents of banana peel are 24-methylene cuycloartanol
palmitate and an unidentified triterpene ketone (Anon, 1999)
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J. Agric. Res. & Dev.9(2). Copy@2010. Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ilorin
Implications of structural policies on the wheat market – comparative static
and dynamic analysis for the EU and US
JADWIGA ZIOLKOWSKA
Humboldt University of Berlin
Chair for Agricultural Policy
Germany
ABSTRACT
Structural policy instruments can directly influence agricultural production, productivity, and
other market variables. Using a Cobb-Douglas market model, we quantitatively assess national
and global implications of structural policies on the wheat market, determined by technical
progress and other structural policy measures in 2005-2020. With a comparative-static and
comparative-dynamic analysis for the European Union (EU-27) and the United States of
America (US) (as leading wheat exporting countries), we show that structural policies (e.g.
technical progress) on the wheat market in the analyzed countries brings about an increase of
the producer surplus; however, it has negative impact on national budgets in the EU-27 and
the US, regardless of the implemented price policies. Moreover, structural policies
implemented over time contribute to an increase of welfare, producer surplus, and budget
expenditures in the analyzed countries. A global effect of national structural policies in the EU-
27 and the US is a continuously decreasing world market price of wheat. Structural policies in
the analyzed countries bring about global positive effects for the economies of other countries
in the world, e.g., growing welfare and consumer surplus, while negative effects for producers
in the rest of the world.
Keywords: Structural policy, technical progress, dynamic market effects, wheat market
INTRODUCTION AND RESEARCH QUESTION
Wheat is the most important cereal crop in the world. In 2007, the world
wheat production amounted to 607 million tons (FAO, 2008), and the biggest
wheat exporters were United States, Russia, the European Union (EU-27),
Canada, and Argentina (OECD, 2007). In the European Union (EU), internal
prices of wheat and other cereals are, on the average, higher than world
market prices. In order to support national producers, the export of the
European cereal crops is subsidized. A different price policy is implemented
in the United States of America (US), where the wheat production is not
directly subsidized, but free trade on the wheat market is allowed (see:
Ziolkowska et al., 2009). Price policies determine directly wheat market
prices and the wheat production.

98 J. ZIOLKOWSKA
However, wheat supply can be influenced also by other instruments, such as
structural policies.
The term ‘structural policy’ used in this paper refers to national policies on
the wheat market in the European Union and the United States. Structural
policy refers to a bundle of measures and activities (undertaken by the
national governments and followed by farmers) which influence economic
structures or else economic conditions on markets. With a structural policy,
changes in an economy, caused by technical progress, globalization, or
structural change, should be weakened, in order to reach overall economic
equilibrium.
In the analyzed case of the wheat market, we define structural policies as
measures and activities that directly influence suppliers (wheat producers),
thus leading to shifts of the supply curve and finally to changes of market
variables, such as welfare, producer surplus, and consumer surplus.
Several studies have been undertaken in recent years on the subject of
wheat production from the background of food price policies to improve
food production efficiency. Amid (2007) analyzed self-sufficiency of wheat
production in Iran and addresses political difficulties in introducing reforms
which could reduce the need for import. Da Silva and Grennes (1999)
investigated the change of market policy from protectionist to free trade
policy on the wheat market in Brazil and emphasized implications for the
national food economy. Studies referring to effects of price policies on the
wheat market have been conducted also in 1990s and before this time,
especially in developing countries. Azzam (1991) for example, presented a
three-sector model for analyzing effects of subsidy policies on the Moroccan
soft wheat market. The price intervention policy has also been addressed by
Muchnik and Allue (1991) who analyzed price bounds and objectives of the
price policies on the wheat market in Chile. Morris (1989) provided an
operational method for measuring comparative advantage for the wheat
market policy in Zimbabwe.
Most of the recent studies on wheat and wheat market analyze the question
of price policies and their implications for national economies. However, the
questions of the influence of different productivities in the leading wheat
exporting countries and structural policy implications, both on the world
market of wheat and on third countries , have not yet been analyzed
explicitly. This paper contributes to current discussions on structural policies
on the wheat market in the EU-27 and the US and implications for the rest of
the world.

Implications of structural policies on the wheat market in EU and US 99
In the paper, two cases of structural policies are visualized by the shift of the
supply curve to the right: a) structural policy determined by technical
progress, and b) structural policy determined by other political instruments.
We analyze the global wheat production and do not investigate different
internal and external factors influencing the wheat production.
In order to investigate the impacts of changing structural policies, we
quantitatively estimate dimensions of market changes by analyzing market
variables. The paper has an explorative character, as little research has been
done on the question of changing productivity and structural policies on the
wheat market. Using a simple market model, we make an attempt to
quantitatively assess potential developments and trends on the wheat
market by different scenarios of structural policies in the European Union
and the US. Particularly, we focus our analysis on changes of producer
surplus, budget expenditures, and welfare as a result of increasing technical
progress and of implementing structural policy instruments over time.
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
Structural policies are usually financed by national budgets; however, also
structural policies without financial contributions from the state budgets are
common, as a result of changing legal rules and production conditions.
For the analyzed case of the EU-27 and the US, we define structural policy as
a policy addressing economic conditions of political economies. Apart from
inter-provincial and international trade, training, regulations (such as rules
governing the financial sector), and tax policies, structural policies include
also support for technical research and development (compare: Department
of Finance Canada, 2008). We explicitly undertake one of the structural
policy issues – technical progress and define it as changes and technical
innovations that can result from new applications of knowledge, improved or
new methods, work processes and proceedings, and finally new products
(BZfPB, 2004). Technical progress brings about changes in the relations of
applied production factors, changes in the production, and subsequently, an
increase of productivity. As a result of technical progress, the input-output
relation can be improved, while a certain production amount (output) is
produced by means of a possibly low input of production factors or else a
possibly high production is achieved by means of a certain input of
production factors. Technical progress makes possible to reduce production
costs and to increase the productivity. This development brings

100 J. ZIOLKOWSKA
about the shift of the supply curve (S) to the right (S’), which influences again
other variables on the wheat market (figure 1).
The change of a structural policy in a closed economy (and the shift of the
supply curve to the right) brings about a change of the market equilibrium:
the equilibrium quantity is growing (change from q to q’) while the
equilibrium price is decreasing (change from p to p’). As a result, in the
equilibrium, the consumers can purchase higher amount of a product for a
lower price (consumer surplus is growing), while producers have to produce
for a lower price (producer surplus is decreasing). However, at the same
time, producers are benefiting just from the structural policy and the shift of
the supply curve. These distribution effects will directly influence welfare
changes that are defined in the case of a closed economy as a change of
consumer surplus and a change of producer surplus. As an effects of
structural policy, welfare is growing (shaded area between S and S’ curves in
figure 1).
Figure. 1. Distributional effects of structural policies in a closed economy.
Source: Jechlitschka et al. (2007): 103
p
q q , qs d
p , ps d
p
q
D
Loss of
producer surplus Gain in
consumer surplus
Welfare gain
Gain in
producer surplus
S
(+)
(-)
S

METHODOLOGY AND DATA
We analyze the implications of technical progress and of other policy
instruments on the wheat market in the EU and the US by means of the
Cobb-Douglas market model, following the theoretical concept of Kirschke
and Jechlitschka (2002). In the model, the supply and demand functions
include the following variables: world market price, national demand and
supply prices, demand and supply quantities, and demand and supply price
elasticities for the respective countries (Ziolkowska et al., 2009). We adopt
the world market price for wheat as reported at the US Gulf Ports in 2006
and 2007 (142.8 €/t), and we abstract simultaneously from additional
transport costs. We estimate the national supply and demand prices of
wheat using Nominal Protection Coefficient (NPC) Indicators developed by
the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD); both
Producers NPC (for estimation of supply prices) and Consumers NPC (for
estimation of demand prices). The producer NPC measures the ratio
between the average price received by producers (at farm gate), including
payments based on output, and the border price (at the farm gate). The
consumer NPC measures the ratio between the domestic price paid by
consumer (at the farm gate) and the border price (at the farm gate) (OECD,
n.d.). Thus, these indicators reflect a ratio between national and border
prices and allow estimating producer and consumer prices. This estimation is
necessary, as demand prices are not available in any official database.
According to these estimations, two different price policies were identified
for the analyzed countries on the wheat market: free trade in the US and
export subsidy of 7% in the EU-27.
We use the statistical database from the OECD to identify the demand and
supply quantities, as well as the Food and Agricultural Policy Institute (FAPRI)
and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) databases for
estimation of demand and supply price elasticities (FAPRI, 2007; USDA,
2007). The demand and supply price elasticities were derived from external
databases due to missing quantitative and qualitative data that was
necessary for statistical estimations. Using the above data, we define the
supply (production) and demand (consumption) functions (formula 1 and 2)
in the situation without any

102 J. ZIOLKOWSKA
structural policy changes (basis scenario).
(1)
)(s s
s
p*c)p(q ε
=
(2)
)(dd d
p*d)p(q ε
=
with:
ps
– supply price pd
– demand price
qs
– supply quantity qd
– demand quantity
c – supply constant d – demand constant
s
ε – supply elasticity
d
ε – demand elasticity.
In order to analyse changes of the production function resulting from an
increasing productivity (technical progress or other structural policy
instruments over time), we integrate a shift parameter ‘f’ into the supply
function (formula 3).
(3)
)(s s
s
p)f1(c)p(q ε
×+×= ;
s
ε > 0
with:
f – shift parameter.
Following, we calibrate the model on the basis of the supply and demand
constants.
The demand function does not change its form, as technical progress or
other structural instruments do not influence the demand for wheat. As
technical progress also influences production costs, we integrate the shift
parameter in the cost function (1+f) (formula 4). Additionally, the change of
the supply curve implies changes of price elasticities (ɛs
+ 1) which results
from the calculation way of the cost function (ps
× qs
refers to the change of
economy equilibrium, while the second part of the formula and its
calculation are related to the change of the slope of the supply curve).
(4) )1()1(
)1(
fpcqpC s
s
sss
+××−×= +
+
ε
ε
with:
C – production costs.

The shift parameter ‘f’ (reflecting an average annual increase of wheat
yields) was estimated with discrete estimation as a slope parameter (ln yt =
ln y0 + wt), basing on the wheat yields in the time 1995-2004. Hence,
following parameters were included in the analysis:
f (EU-27) = 0.61%
f (USA) = 1.35%
The shift parameter f = 0.0061 indicates that, in the analyzed time period,
the wheat yield in each following year was growing by 0.61% on average as
compared to each previous year. The supply and demand functions were
estimated using the formulas 3 and 2, respectively. The calibration of the
model was conducted on the basis of the supply and demand constants. For
this purpose, the supply and demand constants (‘c’ and ‘d’) were set initially
to 1. In this way, the supply and demand calibration parameters have been
estimated, assuming a case that the constants are equal. Further, calibration
parameters have been used to estimate the exact constants of the demand
and supply curves in the situation of export subsidy in the EU and free trade
in the US. The constants have been estimated as follows: c = qs
/supply
calibration parameter and d = qd
/demand calibration parameter. The Cobb-
Douglas market model in the basis scenario for the EU and the US is
presented in figure 2.
Figure. 2. Cobb-Douglas market model for the EU-27 and the US in basis
scenario.
Source: Author’s calculation
Cobb-Douglas market model - EU-27
ps
pd
pw
Supply Demand
152.80 152.80 142.80 133.35 125.63
4.52 0.22
Constants: Price elasticities Shift parameter
c d of supply of demand f
29.3 568.0 0.3 -0.3 0.0061
Calibration parameter
Cobb-Douglas market model - US
ps
pd
pw
Supply Demand
142.80 142.80 142.80 58.06 31.19
5.68 0.07
Constants: Price elasticities Shift parameter
c d of supply of demand f
10.1 454.6 0.35 -0.54 0.0135

104 J. ZIOLKOWSKA
Technical progress can influence the production quantity and production
costs, thus, the supply is influenced not only by the supply price, supply price
elasticity, or supply amount. In the paper, we quantitatively assess the
impact of technical progress on the wheat markets in the EU-27 and the US,
and focus our research on welfare, producer surplus, and budget
expenditures. We calculate the named market variables as follows:
Welfare = benefits – costs + foreign exchange,
Producer surplus = revenue – costs,
Budget expenditures = supply*(pw
– ps
) – demand*(pw
– pd
).
The basis (reference) situation on the wheat market is presented with the
shift parameter f = 0 (without technical progress and without any other
structural instruments influencing the wheat supply). In order to estimate
the impact of structural policies as a result of technical progress, we analyze
a second situation with the shift parameter f = 0.61% for the European Union
and 1.35% for the US. Further, we estimate welfare, producer surplus, and
budget expenditures for both scenarios.
In the basis scenario, current price policies in the EU-27 and in the US are
displayed: export subsidy in the EU and free trade in the US, respectively.
For the analyzed research question, we first abstract from the time-
referenced perspective and investigate a comparative-static market system
in which productivity changes at a given point of time determine changes of
other market variables at the same point of time. In this model, a “small
country” presumption applies, which means that the price policies of the
analyzed countries have no impact on the world market price. Thus, the
assumed world market prices are constant.
In a next step, we extend the analysis on implications of time-referenced
changes on the wheat market by other structural policy instruments with a
comparative-dynamic system by including the time parameter (n) and
calculating the shift parameter fn for the respective years 2005-2020
(formula 5):
(5)
)1(
1 −
+= nn
ff
with:
n – time parameter for the respective years (2005-2020), n = 0, …, 15
fn
- shift parameter for the respective years n

f - shift parameter estimated for the analysis in the basis scenario (f (EU-27) =
0.61%, f (USA) = 1.35%).
Following, we investigate budget expenditures, producer surplus, and
welfare in the analyzed years for the calculated shift parameters over time.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Implications of technical progress on the wheat market in the EU-27
By increasing productivity resulting from technical progress, the supply curve
moves to the right. This structural policy in the EU-27 would induce an
increase of welfare by 86.9 million €, which simultaneously superposes
welfare losses resulting from the protectionist price policy. Hence, compared
to the free trade situation without technical progress, welfare is still positive,
apart from negative welfare effects of the protectionist price policy.
Technical progress also brings about an increase of producer surplus, which
is caused by growing supply quantity under the condition of unchanged
national wheat prices. The results show that when implementing
protectionist price policy in the EU-27, growing productivity would
contribute to an increase of producer surplus by 95 million € as compared to
the basis situation without any structural policy instruments. On the
contrary, growing productivity negatively influences budget expenditures.
When implementing structural policies in the EU-27 the expenditures
induced by the protectionist price policy would increase by 8.1 million €.
Similar implications of technical progress were found for the free trade
situation on the wheat market in the US. The shift of the supply curve to the
right, resulting from technical progress, brings about an increase of producer
surplus and welfare. Thereby, the increase of both variables is similar (81.1
million €), which indicated an increase of producer surplus by 1.33% and of
welfare by 1.05%, as compared to the situation without structural policies.
The budget expenditures under free trade amount to zero.
The analysis proves that regardless of the price policy instrument
implemented on the wheat market (protectionist policy in the EU-27, free
trade in the US) the tendencies in implications of structural policies on the
market variables in the analyzed countries are similar. Indeed, structural
policy in the free trade situation has no negative effects for the national
budget, which is to expect when implementing protectionist price policy.

106 J. ZIOLKOWSKA
Implications of structural policy on the wheat market in the EU-27 over
time
Shifts of the supply curve can be evoked by growing productivity (effected by
technical progress, private and public expenditures) or by other structural
policy instruments that, however, do not require financial support from the
national budgets. The effects of structural policies can be comparably
measured in the course of time for several years. In order to estimate these
effects quantitatively, we adjust and rebuild the comparative-static model to
the comparative-dynamic one, and estimate changes of market variables
over the time period of 15 years (2006-2020) in the EU-27. With this
comparative-dynamic model, we estimate market variables for each year and
compare them over the analyzed time period. In order to differentiate
between technical progress and other structural policy measures (e.g., in
situations without budget expenditures for productivity increase), we
investigate two situations of structural policies:
1) Structural policy effected only by technical progress (the shift parameter f
= 0.61%), and
2) Structural policy effected by other political measures that can influence
the shift of the supply curve apart from technical progress (the shift
parameter f = 0.91%).
The shift parameter for the second analyzed situation was assumed as 50%
of the structural policy effected by technical progress. This assumption is
necessary as no empirical data and estimations on effects of structural policy
measures over time are available. Thereby, the analyzed market system has
an exemplary character and aims at showing potential changes and
implications of different policy scenarios.
For the analyzed situation, we assume constant national and world prices on
the wheat market. The analysis has a prognosis character; and statements
about the future development on the wheat market are made basing on
results of time series analysis. Therefore, we investigate differences between
the analyzed two situations as net effects of structural policies. The net
effects are defined as changes of budget expenditures, producer surplus, and
welfare (in the second analysed situation) compared to the first situation
reflecting structural policy determined only by technical progress.
The analysis shows that in the analyzed time period, welfare, producer
surplus, and budget expenditures in the EU-27 grow continuously.

Figure 3 shows that in the scenario of structural policy determined by
technical progress, the welfare would increase by 1,361.4 million € in 2020,
which is 6.4% more than in 2005. Thus, the welfare change is relatively small
over the analyzed time period. Other structural policy measures would
contribute to a welfare increase of 2,074.5 million €, which is 9.8% as
compared to the welfare level in 2005. Thus, apart from the triggers of the
structural policy (technical progress or other structural policy instruments),
the welfare changes are not very significant in the analyzed time period.
Figure. 3. Changes of welfare as result of technical progress and other
structural policy instruments by protectionist price policy in the EU-27 in
2005-2020.
Source: Authors’ calculation
More significant changes were found for producer surplus and budget
expenditures. According to the analysis, technical progress would bring
about an increase of producer surplus by 1,488 million € (9.6%) in 2020,
while other structural policy instruments by 2,267.4 million € (14.6%), as
compared to the basis scenario in 2005 (figure 4).
Simultaneously, technical progress would positively influence budget
expenditures which are in 2020 almost three times as high as in 2005 (an
increase of 126.6 million €). Other structural policy instruments would bring
about almost four times higher budget expenditures than in 2005 (an
increase of 192.9 million €).
21000
22000
23000
24000
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
years
inmillion€
Welfare - f = 0.61% Welfare - f = 0.91%

108 J. ZIOLKOWSKA
The analysis shows also that the increase of the analyzed variables in the
scenario with structural policy measures is considerably higher. The
difference between the values of the variable in the first situation (technical
progress) and in the second situation (other structural policy instruments)
indicates net effects of structural policies on the wheat market in the EU-27.
As absolute changes of welfare, producer surplus and budget expenditures
have a growing tendency, the net effects of structural policies are also
positive and growing.
Figure. 4. Changes of producer surplus as result of technical progress and
other structural policy instruments by protectionist price policy in the EU-27
in 2005-2020.
Source: Authors’ calculation
World market effects of growing productivity in the EU-27 and US
Structural policies in the leading wheat exporting countries influence also
third countries (rest of the world). In a next step, we expand the analysis and
investigate, how far structural policies on the EU wheat market (in the
situation of protectionist price policy) and on the US wheat market (in the
free trade situation) would influence the world market price of wheat and
market variables in third countries in 2005-2020. This investigation can be
seen as a prognosis analysis. We assume constant national prices for wheat
and estimate structural policy as an effect of technical progress, thus
assuming the shift parameters f = 0.61% (for the EU-27) and 1.35% (for the
US). For the analysis of
15000
16000
17000
18000
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
years
inmillion€
Producer surplus - f = 0.61%
Producer surplus - f = 0.91%

word effects, we extend the model by including third countries and calibrate
it for the new situation. The internal price of wheat in third countries is
assumed to be equal to the world market price. The calibration of the model
occurred for the supply and demand quantities resulting as a difference
between the wheat supply and demand in the world and in the EU and US.
Thereby, we assume that the market is cleared (supply = demand) and we
abstract simultaneously from stocking possibilities. Thus, in the basis
scenario, the market balance is equal to zero. In this situation, production
surplus can be stated in the EU-27 and the US, while in third countries the
supply exceeds the demand by 33 mega tons. The model is presented in
figure 5.
For the analyzed market and the basis scenario, we assume the free trade
situation on the world market of wheat. Due to the broad definition of ‘rest
of the world’ comprising several world countries, no information on price
elasticities is available. As in third countries free trade situation is presented;
we assume the demand and supply price elasticities on the same level as in
the US with free trade policy.
Effects of growing productivity on the world market price of wheat
In order to estimate effects of structural policies in the EU-27 and the US
over time we integrate the shift parameters once in the EU model and in the
US model, consecutively. We investigate changes of the world market price
of wheat by different structural policies in the European Union and the
United States in 2005-2020.
The analysis shows that structural policy in the analyzed countries would
bring about a stepwise decrease of the world market price of wheat in the
following years. Thus, through technical progress, the world market price of
wheat would decrease to 140.8 €/t in the EU-27 and to 140.7 €/t in the US,
as compared to the world price of wheat of 144.3 €/t in the basis situation
without any structural policies in 2005 (figure 6). This development can be
explained with the fact that through technical progress wheat production
costs are decreasing, which directly influences world market prices of wheat.

110 J. ZIOLKOWSKA
Figure. 5. Basis scenario for analysis of world market effects on the wheat
market.
EU
ps
pd
pw
Supply Demand Surplus
152.80 152.80 142.80 132.50 125.60 6.90
4.52 0.22
Constants: Price elasticities:
c d of supply of demand
29.3 567.8 0.3 -0.3
US
ps
pd
pw
142.80 142.80 142.80 57.30 31.20 26.10
5.68 0.07
Constants: Price elasticities:
c d of supply of demand
10.1 454.7 0.35 -0.54
Third countries
ps
pd
pw
142.80 142.80 142.80 430.60 463.60 -33.00
5.68 0.07
Constants: Price elasticities: Balance
c d of supply of demand 0.0
75.8 6756.1 0.35 -0.54

Figure. 6. World market price of wheat by growing productivity in the EU-27
and US in 2005-2020.
Figure 6 shows that a similar tendency was found for the world market prices
of wheat, determined by technical progress in the US. Therefore, the
estimated prices are almost on the same line regardless of different price
policies implemented in the analyzed countries. The analysis shows that
technical progress indeed determines the world market price of wheat;
however, the impact of structural policies on the wheat market is quite
similar for big wheat exporting countries.
Effects of growing productivity on third countries
Structural policies in the EU-27 and in the US can also influence third
countries. In order to quantitatively assess changes of economic variables in
the rest of the world, we focus our analysis on welfare, producer surplus and
consumer surplus, provided the objective to maximize welfare under the
given conditions. The analysis shows that growing productivity in the EU-27
and in the US over the time period 2005-2020 results in growing welfare and
consumer surplus in third countries (see figure 7 and 8 for the EU-27).
140
141
142
143
144
145
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
years
in€/T
pw -EU-27 pw - US

112 J. ZIOLKOWSKA
Figure. 7. Influence of growing productivity in the EU-27 in 2005-2020 on
welfare in third countries.
consumer surplus in third countries.
Simultaneously, negative effects for producers in third countries are
expected (see Figure 9 for the EU-27).
69600
69650
69700
69750
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
years
inmillion€
23400
23600
23800
24000
24200
24400
24600
24800
25000
25200
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
years
inmillion€

producer surplus in third countries.
An increase of welfare and consumer surplus in third countries can be
explained with the fact that third countries in the model are wheat importers
(demand > supply). The growing productivity in the EU-27 results in
decreasing world market price for wheat, which again brings about a welfare
increase. The decreasing world market price is also beneficial for consumers
and disadvantageous for producers in third countries.
A similar tendency was found for structural policies in the US. The expected
influence on third countries is the same as in the case of structural policies in
the EU, and also effects of these changes are comparable. Thus, the analysis
proves again that regardless different structural policies (and thus different
productivities) in the analyzed countries, implications for third countries are
similar.
CONCLUSIONS
Structural policy instruments can directly influence agricultural production
and productivity. Using a Cobb-Douglas market model, we conduct an
explorative analysis on potential national and global implications of
structural policies on the wheat market in the EU-27 and US. The
investigation proves that when implementing protectionist price policy in
44600
45000
45400
45800
46200
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
years
inmillion€

114 J. ZIOLKOWSKA
the EU-27, technical progress can contribute to an increase of producer
surplus by 95 million € and of welfare by 86.9 million €; as compared to the
basis situation without any structural policy instruments. However, it has a
negative impact on budget expenditures which can increase by 8.1 million €.
Similar implications of structural policies were found for the wheat market in
the US and the free trade situation. Thus, apart from price policies
implemented on the wheat market, the implications of structural policies on
the market variables in the analyzed countries are similar. However,
structural policy in the free trade situation has no negative effects for the
national budget, which is the case in the situation of protectionist price
policy in the EU-27. Hence, provided limited budget funds, growing
productivity on the wheat market is more beneficial in case of free trade
policy.
Dynamic effects of structural policies can be effected by different
instruments (technical progress or other structural policy instruments), and
measured in the course of time. In the paper, implications and effects of
different structural policy instruments were investigated. In the analyzed
time period 2006-2015, in the scenario of structural policy determined by
technical progress in the EU-27, the welfare can increase up to 1,361.4
million € in 2020, which is 6.4% more than in 2005. Other structural policy
measures can contribute to a welfare increase by 2,074.5 million €, which is
9.8% more than in 2005. In both cases, the welfare changes do not exceed
the level of 10%. More significant changes were found for producer surplus
and budget expenditures. As a result of technical progress, producer surplus
can increase by 9.6% till 2020, while other structural policy instruments can
lead to an increase of producer surplus by 14.6%, as compared to the basis
scenario in 2005. Technical progress can positively influence budget
expenditures, which are almost three times as high as in the basis scenario in
2005, while other structural policy instruments can bring about four times
higher budget expenditures than in 2005.
In this paper, also the impact of structural policies in the leading wheat
exporting countries on third countries (rest of the world) was analyzed. As a
result of structural policies, a continuous decrease of the world market price
of wheat to 140.8 €/t in the EU-27 and 140.7 €/t in the US was estimated, as
compared to the world price for wheat of 144.3 €/t in the basis situation in
2005, without any structural policies. Thus, leading wheat exporting
countries can influence the situation on the world market; however, changes
of structural policies in these countries are not significant and can lead to a
decrease of the

world price of wheat by approximately 4 €/t. Growing productivity in the EU-
27 can contribute to an increase of consumer surplus by 6.8%, welfare by
0.2%, and to a decrease of producer surplus by 3.2% in 2020, as compared to
2005 without any structural policies implemented.
Additionally, the analysis proves that apart from different productivities in
the leading wheat exporting countries, implications for the world market of
wheat and for third countries are similar.
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Excel. München, Verlag Franz Vahlen.
Morris, M.L. (1989). Wheat Policy Options in Sub-Saharan Africa: The Case of Zimbabwe.
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of wheat. Food Policy, 16(1): 67-73.
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http://stats.oecd.org/wbos/default.aspx (20.11.2007).
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USDA (United States Department of Agriculture). (2007). Commodity and Food Elasticities.
Available on the Internet: http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/Elasticities/ (06.12.2007).
Ziolkowska, J., Jechlitschka, K., Kirschke, D. (2009). Global implications of national price
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Agricultural Economics – Czech (Zemìdìlská ekonomika), 55(10): 475-480.

J. Agric. Res. & Dev. 9(2). Copy@2010. Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ilorin
Maize Response to a Synthetic Organic Nitrogen Fertilizer, Poultry
Manure and Time of Application in the Guinea Savannah of Nigeria
1
J. A. OLOFINTOYE, 2
M. O. SUNNIE-ODODO and 1
V. MAKINDE
1
Department of Agronomy, University of
Ilorin, P.M.B.1515, Ilorin, Nigeria.
2
National Museum, Ilorin.
e-mail: olofintoyejoseph@yahoo.com
ABSTRACT
Two field experiments were conducted at the Teaching and Research Farm of the University of
Ilorin, located in the Guinea savannah agro-ecological zone of Nigeria, to study the effects of a
synthetic organic nitrogen fertilizer (Urea) and poultry manure (Pm-a natural organic nitrogen
source) and their time of application on growth and yield of maize (Zea mays L.). The response
of maize to the two sources of nitrogen varied significantly with time of application. Urea
applied at 4 and 6 weeks after planting (wap) gave the best crop performance while poultry
manure applied between planting and 4 wap recorded better crop performance than the other
times of application. Maize growth and grain yield were consistently better in poultry manure
and urea-treated plants than in the no-fertilizer control treatment at p<0.05. Poultry manure
compared favorably with urea in promoting crop growth and yield when applied between
planting and 4 wap. This suggested that Pm could be used to raise crops of maize on marginal
soils that would not normally support maize production without nitrogen fertilizers.
Keywords: Natural, Synthetic-Organic-Nitrogen-Fertilizer, Maize.
INTRODUCTION
Maize (Zea mays L.) is used extensively as the main source of calories in animal feeds
and it constitutes the staple item of the diets for more human beings over a longer
period of time than any other cereal ( Okoruwa, 1995 ). The increasing global
demand for grains, to feed the growing human population and the ever-expanding
livestock industries have made the need to increase maize production necessary.
The Guinea savannah agro-ecological zone of Nigeria (the food basket of the nation)
has the greatest potential for maize production (Kassam and Kowal, 1973). Ironically,
however, the average maize yield in farmers’ fields, where the bulk of the maize is
produced in this zone is estimated at about 1.5 t ha
-1
. This yield level is much lower
than the potential yields of improved maize varieties (estimated at about 3 to 4 t ha
-
1
) developed for high grain yield in the country. The factors which have been
responsible for the low maize yield in Nigeria include: low levels of soil organic
matter (Jones, 1973) and native nitrogen and phosphorus (Bache and Rogers, 1970).
The low soil fertility has long been recognized as one of the major biophysical
constraints affecting food production in sub-Saharan Africa. Soil fertility depletion in
small holder farms in the region has been identified as the fundamental cause of
declining per capita food production (Sanchez et al., 1990). The depletion has been
attributed mainly to intensive and continuous cropping with little or no fertilizer
application and thus culminating into imbalance between nutrients supply and
extraction from the soil (Sanchez et al., 1990).

118 J. A. OLOFINTOYE et al
The declining productivity of many tropical soils has been one of the major
constraints limiting the realization of the genetic potentials of available improved
crop varieties (Dudal and Deckers, 1993).The need to take appropriate steps to
check the declining soil productivity by improving the physico-chemical properties of
the soil including its fertility in order to increase maize yield is urgent, because the
rate of deterioration is increasing and it is bound to have serious implications on
future food security in the region. Adequate inputs of nutrients as fertilizers as well
as soil amendments to improve physico-chemical properties are required to
overcome the constraints. Maize for example, has high demand for nitrogen, thus
nitrogen becomes the first limiting nutrient as land use intensifies. This explains why
it is almost impossible to grow maize successfully on some soils in the Guinea
savannah of Nigeria without nitrogen fertilizers. For example, FAO (1988) reported
that the role of nitrogen in maize production in the Guinea savannah of Nigeria is not
easily substituted. The scarcity and the increasing cost of inorganic fertilizers in
Nigeria presently have limited their use for maize production (Willrich et al.,1974).
There is therefore the need to look inwards for alternative sources of nutrients for
maize production. An increasing dependence on natural organic wastes, such as
farmyard manures, compost, crop residues and poultry manure as sources of
nutrients for crop production is inevitable in the nearest future, in the light of the
present predicaments in sourcing for inorganic fertilizers.
Poultry manure is abundantly available in many parts of Nigeria, wasting and
sometimes constituting a nuisance where it is generated as a bye-product of
poultry farms. It has been established that poultry manure (Pm), contains
sizeable levels of nitrogen and that 60-80% of its nitrogen is in organic form,
while the remaining 20-40% is in inorganic fractions, and that approximately
50% of the organic nitrogen is mineralizeable within 90 days under
laboratory conditions ( Sims,1986; 1987; Tanimu et al., 2007 ). It is therefore
necessary to provide more information on the management of Pm as source
of nitrogen for maize production. This work was therefore designed to
evaluate the response of an improved maize variety to poultry manure and
urea (a synthetic organic nitrogen fertilizer).
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Two field experiments were conducted during the 2004 and 2005 cropping
seasons at the Teaching and Research Farm of the Faculty of Agriculture,
University of Ilorin (8°,20’N and 4° 35’E), in the Guinea savannah agro-
ecological zone of Nigeria. The experiments were designed to evaluate the
response of maize to two organic sources of nitrogen and their time of
application on a sandy-loam soil. Initial soil samples were taken from the
experimental site and analyzed for physico-chemical properties. The results
of the soil analysis was as presented: sand, 81.5%; silt, 10.5%; clay, 8.0%; pH
(H2O), 5.79; organic matter,20 g kg-1
; available P, 5.5 ppm; Calcium, 1.5 cmol
kg-1
; Potassium,

Fertilizer Type and Time of Application on Maize Response 119
0.2 cmol kg-1
; Magnesium, 1.1 cmol kg-1
; Sodium, 1.2 cmol kg-1
; total
nitrogen, 4.22 g kg-1
.
The site was cropped to maize during the previous season. The land was
ploughed once, harrowed twice and maize was planted on the flat. Two
organic nitrogen fertilizers (urea and Pm), a no-fertilizer control and five
times of application [2 weeks before planting (wbp), at planting (atp) 2, 4 and
6 weeks after planting (wap)], were tested on an improved maize variety
(SWAN-1-SR), maturing in about 100days. The treatments were arranged as a
3×5 factorial in randomized complete block design (RCBD), in 2004. Each of
the 15 treatment combinations was replicated three times. In 2005 the two
organic nitrogen sources and the no-fertilizer control and four times of
application ( atp, 2, 4, and 6wap) were evaluated using 3×4 factorial
arrangement in RCBD, with three replications. The synthetic organic nitrogen
fertilizer used was urea (CONH2)2 containing 46% N and the rate of nitrogen
from this source was 100 kg N ha-1
. In estimating the quantity of Pm needed
to supply 100 kg N ha-1
, 1.29 % N was used as the percentage of N in Pm
instead of the 4.3 % total N obtained in a laboratory analysis as the
percentage of total N in the Pm. The 1.29% N represented the mineralizable
N in the Pm, based on literature that 60 – 80 % of nitrogen in poultry manure
is in organic fraction and that approximately 50 % of the organic fraction was
mineralized within 90 days under laboratory conditions (Sims, 1986; 1987
Tanimu et al., 2007). The poultry manure was therefore applied at the rate of
5.8 t ha-1
. Wet and well disintegrated Pm was used. Phosphorus and
potassium were applied at the rates of 50 kg P2O5 and 30 kg K2O ha-1
,
respectively, to all plots using single supper phosphate and muriate of
potash, respectively. The spacing was 90 cm between and 60 cm within rows
and three plants were maintained per stand. Data on grain yield and yield
components were collected in 2004 while growth parameters were included
in 2005. All plots were weeded two times during the growing season. All the
data collected were subjected to statistical analysis and the significant means
were separated by using the new Duncan’s multiple range test (DMRT).
RESULT
Table 1 shows the mean square of ANOVA of treatments on yield
components and grain yield of maize in 2004. Time of application of the
nitrogen sources had no significant effects on cob length and diameter but it
significantly influenced the weight of 1000 seeds and grain yield. Heavier
grains were recorded for the 6 wap treatment than in all other times of
application (Table 2). The superiority of the 6 wap treatment over other
times of application as recorded in the weight of 1000 grains, was however,
not reflected in the grain yield, which was not statistically different for all
times of application except for the 2 wbp treatment,

which produced the lowest grain yield. The influence of nitrogen sources on
yield and yield components was highly significant. Cob length and weight of
1000 seeds in urea and Pm treated plants were comparable and they were
significantly better than that obtained in the no- fertilizer treatment. Urea
however, produced higher grain yield than the poultry manure (pm) and the
no-fertilizer control while Pm was also superior to the no-fertilizer control.
Cob diameter was not affected by nitrogen sources (Table 2).
Interaction between nitrogen sources and time of application was significant
for grain yield in 2004 (Table 1) and for plant height, stem girth and grain
yield in 2005 (Table 3). The main effects of nitrogen sources and time of
application on plant height, stem girth, grain yield and yield components in
2005 are presented in Table 4.Time of application had no significant effects
on weight of 1000 grains while nitrogen sources had marked influence. Urea
and Pm were comparable and consistently better than the no-fertilizer
treatment in their effects on weight of 1000 seeds.
The interactive effects between nitrogen sources and time of application on
grain yield in 2004, 2005, stem girth and plant height in 2005 are presented
in figures 1,2,3 and 4, respectively .The figures, (interactive bar charts)
showed that time of application was a determining factor in the responses of
maize to the nitrogen sources. In other words, how well the crop responded
to the nitrogen sources in terms of growth and yield was dependent on the
time during the life duration of the crop that the fertilizer was applied. In
figures 1 and 2, the highest grain yields were recorded for urea applied at 4
wap (3.8 t ha-1
, in 2004 and 2.80 t ha-1
, in 2005), followed by urea applied at
6 wap (3.60 t ha-1
in 2004 and 2.20 t ha-1
in 2005). The two treatments were
comparable and they produced yields which were statistically higher than
yields obtained from the same source of N applied at 2 wbp, atp and 2 wap.
Urea at all its time of application was superior to the no- fertilizer control.
Application of urea at 2 wbp in 2004 produced the lowest yield (2.1 t ha-1
) for
urea (fig. 1) while in 2005 the lowest grain yield (1.08 t ha-1
) was recorded in
urea applied at planting. Urea was only superior to Pm at all times of
application when applied at 4 and 6 wap; at other times of application urea
and Pm were comparable. Poultry manure produced significantly higher
grain yield than the no- fertilizer control at all times of application except 2
wbp in 2004 and at planting in 2005. The highest grain yield for Pm was
recorded at application made 4 wap (2.5 t ha-1
) and 6 wap (2.45 t ha-1
).
Poultry manure applied 2 wbp produced the least and significantly lower
yield (1.84 t ha-1
) than yield in other times of application. On the contrary,
Pm applied 2 wap produced the highest grain yield (1.81 t ha-1
) in 2005,
which was significantly better than yields recorded for Pm at other times of

application. Yield from Pm applied at 2 wap compared favorable with yield
from urea applied 2 wap (1.90 t ha-1
) and it was better than the yield from
urea applied at planting (1.63 t ha-1
). Application of Pm at planting was not
better than the no-fertilizer control in 2005, but in 2004 it was significantly
better.
The interactive effects of the nitrogen sources and time of application on
stem girth and plant height are presented in figures 3 and 4. The no-fertilizer
treatment recorded significantly lower plant height and stem girth than urea
and Pm at all the times of application. Urea-treated plants were significantly
taller and thicker in diameter than Pm-treated plants, at all the times of
application. The highest height (177.9 cm) and and thickest stem girth (2.70
cm) were obtained in applications made at 2 wap. Responses of maize to the
nitrogen sources in terms plant growth, varied significantly with time of
application, as shown in the figures 3 and 4.
DISCUSSION
The results show that, when applied at the right time, urea and Pm had
significant positive impacts on maize performance as compared with the no-
fertilizer control treatment. Applied between planting and 4 wap, Pm
compared favorably with urea in its influence on the growth and yield of
maize. This result was corroborated by other reports that higher soyabean
grain yield was obtained with poultry manure applied at 10-20 t ha-1
as
compared with mineral fertilizers in the Guinea savannah of Nigeria (Alofe et
al., 1995). Other works have also demonstrated the efficiency and
effectiveness of farmyard manure and other organic nutrient sources in
maintaining soil fertility, increasing maize and other crops’ yields and
sustaining soil productivity (Asfaw et al., 1997; Grant, 1981; Heluf
Gebrekidan et al., 1999). These results therefore suggested that Pm could be
used to successfully raise crops of maize in the absence of mineral fertilizers,
on exhausted soils that would not have been able to support maize
cultivation without mineral nitrogen fertilizers in the Guinea savannah of
Nigeria. The reality of such marginal soils in the Guinea savannah of Nigeria
would explain why it is almost impossible to grow maize without mineral
fertilizers on some soils in the region. The statement credited to FAO (1988),
that the role of nitrogen in maize production in the Guinea savannah of
Nigeria is not easily substituted, confirms the reality of the presence of such
marginal soils in the region.

The results also indicated that the response of maize to the nitrogen sources
varied significantly with time of application. In other words, timely
application of the organic nitrogen sources was an important factor
determining how well the maize responded to them. For urea, applications
made at 4 and 6 wap gave the best results while Pm applied between
planting and 4 wap recorded the best crop performance.
The apparent poor response of maize to the fertilizers applied 2 wbp could
be due to the absence of crop roots to receive the nutrients from the
fertilizers when applied. Most of the nitrogen in the fertilizers, particularly
urea, could have been lost before crop establishment, owing to the mobility
of nitrogen in the soil. This inference sounds convincing, considering the
porous nature of the soil used in these trials.
The application of urea at 4-6 wap resulted in good grain yield, because the
applications coincided with the period of flower initiation in the maize
cultivar used, which matures in 90 - 100 days; its flower initiation was
expected at 4-7 wap. The application of Pm at planting to 4 wap also ensured
that nitrogen was made available to maize during the period of flower
initiation to taselling, through mineralization and slow release. It has been
established that the period between flower initiation and anthesis is the time
cereals most need nitrogen for grain formation and development (Tanaka et
al., 1966 ). Works on rice at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)
also revealed that 75% of the carbohydrates in cereal grains come from
photosynthesis after flowering (Tanaka et al., 1966).
REFERENCES
Alofe, C. O., Olowe, V. I. O. and Banmeke, I. O. 1995. Response
of soybean cultivar “Doko” to poultry manure, NPK
fertilizer and row spacing in a humid tropical location.
Tropical Oilseed Journal 2 : 144 – 147.
Asfaw Bolay, Heluf Gebrekidan, Yohannes Uloro and Eylachew
Zewdie. 1997. Effects of crop residues on grain yield of
sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) to application of NP
fertilizers. Nutrient Cycling Agronomy. 48: 191- 196.
Bache, B. W. and Rogers, N. E. 1970. Soil phosphate values in
relation to phosphate supply to plants from some Nigerian
soils. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge. 74: 282
– 290.

Dudal, R. and Deckers, J. 1993. Soil organic matter in relation to
soil productivity. In Soil organic matter dynamics and
sustainability of tropical agriculture, Eds. Mulongoy, K. and
Merck, R., John Wiley and Sons Ltd., pp 377 – 380.
Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO). 1988. Fertilizer and
plant nutrition. Bulletin No. 3. Rome, Italy. 15 p.
Grant, P. M. 1981. The fertility of sandveld soils in peasant
agriculture. Zimbabwe Agricultural Journal. 78: 169 – 175.
Heluf Gebrekidan, Asfaw Belay, Yohannes Uloro and Eylachew
Zewdie. 1999. Yield response of maize (Zea mays L.) to crop
residue management on two major soil types of Alemaya,
eastern Ethiopia: I. Effects of varying rates of applied and
residual NP fertilizers. Nutrient Cycling Agronomy. 54: 65 –
71.
Jones, M. J. 1973. The organic matter content of the savannah
soils of West Africa. Journal of Soil Science. 24: 42- 43.
Kassam, A.H. and kowal, J.M. 1973. Productivity of crops in the
savannah and rain forest zones in Nigeria. Savannah
2(1):39-49.
Okoruwa, A.E. 1995. Utilization and processing of maize.
International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan,
Nigeria. Research guide 35. 20p.
Sanchez P.A. Izac, A.M. Valencia, I. and Pieri, C. 1996. Soil fertility
replenishment in Africa. A concept note in Breth (eds.)
proceedings of workshop on achieving greater impact from
research investments in Africa, 26-30
th
September, 1996,
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Sims, J.T. 1986. Nitrogen transformation in a poultry manure
amended soil. Temperature and moisture effects. Journal
Environ. Qual.15:59-63.
Sims, J.T. 1987. Agronomic evaluation of poultry manure as
nitrogen source for conventional and no tillage corn. Agron.
Journal 79: 563-570.
Tanaka, A. Kawano, K. and Yamaguchi, J. 1966. Photosynthesis,
respiration and plant type of tropical rice plant. The
International Rice Research Institute. Technical Bulletin 7.
1966 46pp. (third printing, Dec. 1974)
Tanimu, J.E. Iwuafor, N.O. Odunze, A.C. and Tian, G. 2007. Effect
of incorporation of leguminous cover crops on yield and
yield components of maize. World Journal Agricultural
Science. 3(2):243-349.
Willrich, T.L. Turnen, D.O. and Volks V.V. 1974. Manure
application guidelines for Pacific Northwest. American
Society of Agricultural Engineering, St. Joseph, M. ASAE
paper no 74-4601.

J. Agric. Res. & Dev. 9(2) Copy@2010. Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ilorin
Constraint to Women’s Participation in Agricultural Production
in Rural Areas of Kaduna State, Nigeria
R .O. YUSUF, Y.A. ARIGBEDE and O. KOLADE
Department of Geography,
Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria,
Nigeria
ABSTRACT
Despite the increasing advocate for women empowerment through equitable policy
framework , many women in rural areas still face serious obstacles that frustrate their attempt
to secure qualitative livelihood from farming activities. The major aim of this paper is to
examine the constraints faced by rural women farmers towards actualizing their aim for
household food security and improved income from farming enterprises. To achieve the aim
and objectives, questionnaire survey of 280 women systematically drawn from four rural
districts of Sabon-Gari and Giwa Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Kaduna state was
employed .Descriptive statistics such as frequency table, and percentages were employed to
analyse the data collected while Student’s t-test was used to validate the hypothesis. From the
results, about 70% of sampled women farmers practice farming on a subsistence basis. Also,
96% claim that their productive potential is not maximized while 83.64% encounter several
socio-economic constraints among which were financial and socially-embedded constraints
with 33.18% and 87.27% responses respectively. The result of the Student’s t test reveals that
the critical t value of 2.179 with 12 degrees of freedom is significant at 0.05 level
.Consequently, the hypothesis that similar financial and socio-cultural constraints face women
farmer’s agricultural activities is rejected. The results revealed that constraints faced by
women farmers tend to reduce with increasing urbanization though further study is needed in
this direction. Conclusion was based on the recommendations that there should be formulation
and implementation of women-biased landholding and titling policies through modification of
the present land tenure system, creating a financial credit pool for women using the Welfare
Departments of local government councils, and organizing women farmers into functional
women cooperatives for easy access to loans and farm input.
Key words: Constraints, women farmers, rural area, Giwa LGA, Sabon-Gari LGA.
INTRODUCTION
Several policy related efforts such as Back to land scheme, Green
Revolution, Operation feed the nation, Agricultural Development
Programmes geared at intensifying the drive to a food-secured Nigeria has
not achieved the targeted aim because of several lapses. A major area of
concern is the inadequate integration of women into the agricultural sector.
Women encounter different agricultural-related bottlenecks which have
continued to drawback their striving for food self-sufficiency and improved
income at the household and community levels. As Mamman (1995) rightly
observed, there is a monumental loss in any developing country's economic
productivity that is negligent of the role of women in agricultural production.

126 R. O. YUSUF et al
In the 1970s most of the researches carried out on the agricultural activities
of women particularly in northern Nigeria showed that women involvement
were low. For example, Salihu and Ohwona (1995) found out that in Giwa
and Makarfi Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Kaduna state, women’s
agricultural productivity was grossly inadequate. Even during colonialism
several factors combined to restrict women’s productive participation in
farming (Trenchard, 1987). Lately, however and due to economic realities,
the role of women as food producers has increased substantially to between
60% - 80% even though few data exist on the agricultural and economic
activities of rural women (Odugbesan, 2008). The idea that men are the real
or supposed to be the breadwinners of their households is deeply
entrenched in the society (Mamman, 1995; Ubogu and Ata, 2010) .Hinged on
this premise; male farmers were the target beneficiaries of agricultural
extension programmes and services.
Yet as more men migrate to urban areas from rural areas, more women are
left as household heads carrying on with the agricultural activities that
provide basic needs for their families. It is documented that over 80% of all
rural women in sub-saharan Africa including Nigeria are economically active
in one agricultural activity or the other (Onyenechere, 2008). Studies from
different parts of the world have demonstrated the unrivalled role of rural
women in agricultural production. They produce 70% of food crops for
domestic consumption and sales, and make up over 70% of the agricultural
labour force (Emeghara and Njoku, 2008; Ayoola, 2001).
Women no doubt constitute the largest rural population especially
where male-focused rural out-migration is well established. Also they work
long hard hours as wives, mothers and bread winners (Djaji, 1998).
Ipingbemi, and Aloba (2005), discovered that women perform close to 90%
of works associated with processing of food crops; 80% of hoeing and
weeding; 80% of efforts relating to food storage and transportation from
farm to village, as well as 60% of the harvesting and marketing work. Also, as
documented by Lyam and Jeiyol (2008) the agricultural activities of women
do not lead to serious environmental degradation when compared to men
Unfortunately, agricultural development programmes are in most cases
designed and planned for men especially in rural societies where socio-
religious patriarchy is well entrenched. Worse still, men displace women
when new innovations are introduced (Olayiwole, 1984).
In eastern Nigeria, farming is the important economic activity of the rural
women (Akande, 1984). Studies in former Anambra and lmo states, revealed
that over 90% of the rural women were engaged in farming and post-harvest
operation, as they perform such tasks as land clearing and preparation,
planting, weeding and harvesting work on their own small plots as well as on
their husband plots. The women grow food crops such as rice, maize,
cassava,

Women’s Participation in Agricultural Production 127
vegetable etc while men on the other hand grow tree crops and tuber crops
especially yams. Although depending on the socio-cultural flexibility of
different Nigerian ethnic groups, a large number of women were involved in
decision making concerning farm operations (Mamman, 1995) and animal
husbandry (Makun, et. al. 2005,). Indeed, Lyam and Jeiyol (2008)’s study in
Benue state,Nigeria, reveals that there is no glaring difference in the
agricultural operations of both male and female farmers .
It is clear from the foregoing that the position of the rural women in
developing countries has not changed significantly since the 1970s. Rather,
their socio-economic conditions have continued to deteriorate. This situation
is even more worrisome considering the fairly higher level of economic
prosperity achieved by these countries during the same period and the
vigorous campaign for gender equality in access to economic opportunities
and women empowerment. In fact this partly is one of the issues
emphasized after the 1995 Beijin Conference 35% affirmative action on
women representation. According to an IFAD (1992) survey, the number of
women in poverty in developing countries increased by 50% in the last two
decade while that of the overall population grew by only 40%.Also in Nigeria,
available data indicates that incidence of poverty among women is higher
(FOS, 1997& 1998). Also, the poverty profile in Nigeria (FOS, 1999) cited in
Yusuf (2008) shows that with a poverty incidence of 67.7%, Kaduna state
ranked among the tenth poorest states in Nigeria.
Implication of this is that rural poverty is increasing at a faster rate amongst
women whereas regrettably though, the number of women assuming house-
hold headship is increasing. The rural female-headed households are poorer
than the others; they have less access to both tangible and non tangible
resources of production (Emeghara and Njoku, 2008). Thus, if these women
continue to face constraints it will increase not only the poverty level of the
households but will also contribute to child and maternal mortality with the
attendant consequences on the nation's development. Constraints as used
here are limitations, problems, tightly controlled restrictions and other
processes that stifle or hinder progress. The aim of this paper is therefore to
analyze these constraints in rural settlements from a section of northern
Nigeria where poverty incidence is high and socio-cultural rigidities are also
well entrenched. This is what the paper addresses with a two-pronged
objectives: (1) to find out the area of agricultural production in which women
participation are relevant , and (2) to examine some of the major challenges
hindering women from effectively benefiting from progress in agricultural
development and contributing their quota to boosting their income and
food security.

A review of the uses and methods of processing banana and plantain (musa spp.) into storable food products

A review of the uses and methods of processing banana and plantain (musa spp.) into storable food products

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A review of the uses and methods of processing banana and plantain (musa spp.) into storable food products